Magnifica Humanitas

ensemble: wind ensemble (exact instrumentation below)
duration: 5 minutes
written: fall 2026
commissioned by: Utah Valley University Wind Symphony; Christopher Ramos, director
premiered: February 6, 2027; Utah Music Educators Assoc. 2027 Conference; St. George, UT

PROGRAM Note:

Magnifica Humanitas takes its title from Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical on artificial intelligence, a dire warning sounding the alarm on a rising machine age.

The work unfolds through a structural tug-of-war between two contrasting musical worlds: a relentlessly driving, machine-like music and a serene, lyrical music derived from a short chant by Hildegard von Bingen—among the earliest written music in human history.

The piece opens with this first kind of ruthless machine music, and gradually yields as Hildegard’s chant gains strength. As the music progresses, this ancient, human expression begins to dismantle the machine's dominance, ultimately winning out over rigid automation.

Instrumentation:

piccolo — 2 flutes — oboe(s) — bassoon(s)
3 Bb clarinets — bass clarinet
2 alto saxophones — tenor saxophone — baritone saxophone

2 F horns — 3 Bb trumpets — 2 trombones — bass trombone — tuba

timpani
percussion (4 players)
I. marimba, suspended cymbal, 2 triangles
II. xylophone, corrugated metal
III. 3 tom-toms, snare drum, whip, large guiro
IV. bass drum, vibraphone